Back to basics – simple things you can do to make your business more sustainable

Eco-friendly can sound like sustainability, non-toxic, energy-efficient, global warming, corporate social responsibility, biodegradable, climate change.

More like eco-anxiety.

As with most tasks in life, starting is often the hardest part. Especially when it’s a foreign topic. With so many intimidating words out there around the subject, it’s not surprising that the thought of doing anything about it just gets overwhelming. But chances are you’re here because you realise the responsibility as a businessperson to start doing right by our home – our most fragile and precious resource. Chances are you also just don’t know where to start, or whether your company can actually make a difference (the answer to that is yes, by the way).

Good news is that putting eco-friendly habits to practice isn’t as taxing as you might think. Here are 3 ways you can get the ball rolling and do your bit:

Let there be light

Rather than having numerous (probably industrial style) lights on from 8am until 6pm, if your office has windows, try going without. Or, turn them off for the brightest period of the day. Maybe consider whether there are lights on in unused spaces too – that could be in bathrooms, break rooms, cupboards or hallways. While it can be easy to leave them on all day every day without even realising, there’s so many benefits from having a break. Of course you’ll be reducing the energy you’re using and saving money, but the World Green Building Council have also found that employees who work near sunlit windows have a 15% higher production rate. So let those rays in!

Green out

Grabbing some plants for the office is a simple way you can show some love to the environment while also boosting your businesses aesthetic. On the eco side of things, plants naturally purify the air and help to reduce your office’s carbon emissions. They’ll also help detox the air of chemicals from office furniture or activities too. Even just one desk plant can be enough to improve air quality. Additionally, they look great, make staff more productive, more creative, less stressed, and less likely to get sick.

Don’t have green fingers? Don’t worry. You don’t need to overcomplicate the whole plant business or worry about which ones to get. Here are some of the best eco-friendly plants for the office that won’t require a horticulture degree:

Peace lily, snake plant, monstera, fittonia, orchid, fiddle-leaf fig. Too easy!

Go Paperless

We’re in 2021 people. It’s the electronic era. If your business is still operating as pen and paper, you’re getting left behind. Change is scary, yes. But it’s an important step in not only helping the environment, but also helping your business grow and become as efficient as possible. If excessive amounts of paper are reduced, greenhouse gas emissions will be dramatically reduced too. It’s one of the key reasons why we as Formitize exist – to deliver smart, innovative solutions to businesses that also help save the world through reducing a company’s carbon footprint.

Used as a complete end-to-end system for various industries, from digital safety documents, CRM, proposals, jobs, reporting, accounts and tasks, there’s no need for paper at all.

No one is expecting you to single-handedly change the world.

The important thing is that you make a start.